The Hong Kong stock market has climbed higher in two straight sessions, collecting more than 360 points or 2 percent along the way. The Hang Seng Index now sits just beneath the 18,450-point plateau and it may see additional support on Wednesday.
The global forecast for the Asian markets suggests mild upside on easing treasury yields. The European markets were down and the U.S. bourses were up and the Asian markets figure to follow the latter lead.
The Hang Seng finished modestly higher on Tuesday following gains from the properties and a mixed performance from the technology stocks.
For the day, the index rose 41.11 points or 0.22 percent to finish at 18,444.11 after trading between 18,335.45 and 18,541.03.
Among the actives, Alibaba Group lost 0.33 percent, while Alibaba Health Info jumped 2.67 percent, ANTA Sports strengthened 2.29 percent, China Life Insurance collected 1.23 percent, China Mengniu Dairy increased 0.54 percent, China Resources Land soared 3.96 percent, CITIC advanced 0.62 percent, CNOOC tumbled 1.90 percent, Country Garden spiked 3.68 percent, CSPC Pharmaceutical rallied 2.98 percent, Galaxy Entertainment climbed 1.96 percent, Hang Lung Properties accelerated 3.15 percent, Henderson Land improved 0.61 percent, Hong Kong & China Gas added 0.49 percent, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China retreated 0.89 percent, JD.com rose 0.34 percent, Lenovo fell 0.18 percent, Li Ning gained 0.48 percent, Meituan surged 4.13 percent, New World Development perked 0.24 percent, Techtronic Industries gathered 0.31 percent, Xiaomi Corporation sank 0.67 percent and WuXi Biologics skyrocketed 4.06 percent.
The lead from Wall Street is cautiously optimistic as the major averages spent much Tuesday under water before a late rally nudged them modestly up into the green.
The Dow climbed 140.26 points or 0.36 percent to finish at 38,711.29, while the NASDAQ rose 28.38 points or 0.17 percent to close at 16,857.05 and the S&P 500 perked 7.94 points or 0.15 percent to end at 5,291.34.
The higher close by the major averages came on a notable decrease by treasury yields, which extended their recent decline. The yield on the benchmark ten-year note closed lower for the fourth straight session, pulling back further off the nearly one-month closing high last Wednesday.
The continued advance by treasuries came amid signs of weakness in the labor market, with a report from the Labor Department showing a modest decrease in U.S. job openings in April.
On Friday, the Labor Department is scheduled to release its more closely watched monthly jobs report, which could have a significant impact on the outlook for the economy and interest rates.
Oil prices fell on Tuesday, extending losses from the previous session amid concerns about possible oversupply in the market after OPEC decided to phase out voluntary production cuts from October. West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures for July fell $0.97 or 1.3 percent at $73.25 a barrel.